A gut wrenching exploration of the hardship of life and awakening sexuality. Seventeen year old Shane Stephenson has just lost his father ... his sole anchor in life. And his uncaring uncle throws him out of the house. In an inspirational moment he sets out on a quest to find the mother, who abandon him as an adolescent. Relying on a solitary Christmas card received many years ago he sets out to reconnect with her - hoping she still resides in the small town of Holm, Minnesota. The town proves to be sort of a metaphor of his life ... appearing unwanted and unloved , with much of downtown businesses closed and shuttered amongst decaying infrastructure.
In his search for information he stumbles into multiple relationships with a diverse cast of men and woman in their late teens and early twenties. “J” and his girlfriend Mary along with dogs: Sisyphus and Lucifer along with the weird Russell forms early meaningful bonds. But nothing compared to the expanding friendship with the beautiful and brilliant Jenny. Mucking up the works is the encounter with the violent and unhinged Sven Svenson ... who in his first encounter with Shane mistakes him for a girl, because of his long blond hair and slight build.
Shane learns that his mother used to work at the plastic factory and has moved away. Nonetheless his search drops him into multiple conflicting relationships that questions his sexuality.
Raymond Strom weaves together a poetic narrative of beautiful prose that explores the issues of abandonment and the desire to forgive - bathed in a setting of drugs and violence. He offers insight into the human condition. “ .... clarity only comes when looking back on things. Life isn’t easy while it’s happening and sometimes people can’t figure out how to say what they need so they choose to walk away.”
Thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for providing an Advance Reading Copy of this brilliant debut novel in exchange for an honest review. I was especially impressed how Strom was able to ratchet up the tension to culminate in a powerful denouement. I anticipate a meaningful literary career for Raymond Strom.

Northern Lights is the Story of Shane, a boy who had recently lost his father, thrown out by his uncle, and searching for his long-gone mother. He arrives in Holm, Minnesota the last place he received a letter from his mother. She is gone, and no one has much to say about her. He meets new friends resigned to live in Holm. Holm has been dying for a while. Walmart moved to the fringes of town and destroyed downtown. It seems the only people with money are the drug dealers. Shane himself is androgynous looking fluid in his sexuality; what there is of it. The story is a dark and depressing look at northern cities, once manufacturing centers, now crumbling and abandoned. The novel covers most young adult issues from pregnancy, drugs, bullying, sexuality, and the promise of a bleak future. The book will be more of interest to younger and millennial readers as it captures their era and issues.

An intense and disturbing book, It's the very personal story of a boy who decided to seek out his mother, who left many years ago; his father has recently died, and he's visiting Holm, Minnesota, trying to find out where his mom ended up.

With complex characters, most of them with the interconnections that are inevitable in a small town, Sex, drugs, beatings, and even murder are among the things he finds along the way. It's graphic but not in an offensive or licentious way, more like a factual report of what happened.

"Northern Lights" grips you and won't let you go, but it's not easy to read. I think my primary emotion when I finished was relief - I wasn't wishing it went on longer, or that there'd be a sequel. Yet I'm glad I read it and I do recommend it if you're up for a challenge.